Blackwater in hot water

The hired guns are under fire from both American and Iraqi politicians

BAGHDAD is plainly one of the most dangerous places in the world, not least for Americans. So the record of Blackwater USA, an American private military company, in ensuring the safety of all those it protects is striking. The trouble is, its aggressive tactics have too often led to the death of innocent Iraqis.

On September 16th, according to the Iraqi government, a Blackwater convoy opened fire indiscriminately at a busy Baghdad crossroads, killing 17 bystanders. The government rejects Blackwater's claim that its men had come under fire. Although Blackwater was allowed to resume operations, Iraqi officials say they want the company to leave within six months. Some are demanding an $8m payment for each victim's family.

In a separate incident on October 10th, a Dubai-based firm called United Resources Group was accused of firing randomly and killing two women in Baghdad. The company said its men shot at an approaching car that had ignored repeated warnings to stop.

Iraq has an estimated 20,000-30,000 private security contractors, usually guarding VIPs and convoys. They are formally immune from Iraqi law yet are rarely disciplined by the Western governments that employ them. Often disliked by Iraqis more than foreign troops, they provide a popular cause for the fragile Iraqi government to assert itself. Democrats in charge of the American Congress have also taken aim at them. The House of Representatives passed a bill making all government contractors accountable under American law, and telling the FBI to prosecute offenders.

According to a report by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Blackwater was involved in 195 shootings in just over 32 months. On four out of five occasions the guards fired first and asked questions later, if ever. The incidents have usually been hushed up, with the payment of compensation if necessary.

Blackwater has secured more than $1 billion in American government contracts, mainly to protect American diplomats. Its founder, Erik Prince, a former Navy SEAL, told the committee that “no individual protected by Blackwater has ever been killed or seriously injured”, while 30 of its staff had died.

By the same token none of its staff has been prosecuted, though 122 have been sacked, including a drunk employee who killed a bodyguard of an Iraqi vice-president and was spirited out of Iraq. A Department of Justice investigation has yet to decide whether he will be charged.

Blackwater paid $15,000 in compensation. According to emails made public, the American chargé d'affaires had initially suggested paying $250,000, but his own security officials said such “crazy sums” would set a bad precedent, and “cause incidents with people trying to get killed by our guys to financially guarantee their family's future”. Blackwater, they said, “do an exceptional job”.